Around the Corner for August 1, 2008

By Tiffiny Woo

Published: August 1, 2008

Capitol Hill
The Beaty family spent the Fourth of July in Washington D.C. this year.
Lindsey Beaty, a senior at The University of Alabama, had an internship with Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions this summer.
Dan and Kim Beaty decided to make it a family vacation before getting Lindsay to her quarters in Alexandria, Va.
They toured most of the monuments, including the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial, Arlington Cemetery, the Vietnam Wall, the Korean Memorial and the new World War II Memorial.
The group enjoyed touring the Holocaust Museum and watching dignitaries being ushered in to a waiting caravan of SUVs at the White House. Shelley was captivated by the Hope Diamond that is displayed in the Smithsonian’s Natural History Museum.
Kim said that the Fourth of July parade down Constitutional Avenue was very moving and patriotic.
She said, “It was hard to cheer for the five branches of service as they proudly marched by because I had such a lump in my throat. One lady kept yelling, ‘Thank you, thank you’ as the troops moved down the street.”
The family watched the festive fireworks from the Georgetown Harbor.
It doesn’t get more patriotic than celebrating Independence Day in our nation’s capitol!

A cyberspace home for proud Tigers
I recently received news about a new Web site for Eufaula High School alumni.
Eufaulian Beth Richards says she has lived here all her life, but recently has been able to reconnect with old classmates from her high school days thanks to a new Web site for EHS alumni.
“I’ve found classmates that I haven’t seen in 18 years, and I’ve talked to some that live right here in town that I see all the time,” Beth said.
The site, http://ehstigers.ning.com, was designed and established by alumni Reginald Hicks, who now works at Barbour County Middle School in Louisville.
All alumni are invited to join the website.
Beth tells me that a group of alumni that have recently organized online are planning to hold tailgating and other events this fall.
What a great tool for classmates to keep in touch over long distances.

Good Samaritan
Mrs. Betty Speights came to see me at the office last week and had a heartwarming story to share.
Two Sundays ago, she was buying a birthday cake for Mrs. Estre Barbee, who turned 98. It was a big cake, she said, and as she stood in line with the cake, a young man asked her what it was for.
After sharing her story with him, Mrs. Speights realized that she had forgotten to get a birthday balloon. The man offered to hold her buggy and the cake while she went to get the balloon so she wouldn’t lose her place in line.
“He said he would take care of it for me,” she said. “When I got back and tried to pay for the cake and balloon, the man told me that he had already paid for my cake.”
Mrs. Speights doesn’t know the name of her Good Samaritan but tears still come to her eyes when she thinks about the kindness he showed her.
Thank you for putting a smile on that sweet lady’s face and for showing that Eufaula is still full of good people.

Brittany Lynn crowned
Miss Brittany Lynn, an eighth grader at The Lakeside School, was crowned Junior Miss Alabama Forestry in June.
Miss Lynn competed against 25 other girls ages 11-13 in the Junior division of the pageant. She was representing Greater Eufaula Forestry in the pageant, which included girls from across Alabama.
Miss Lynn plans to attend various functions and parades throughout Alabama this year in an effort to promote the forestry industry.
She is the daughter of Mark and Suzanne Lynn of Eufaula and she has a younger brother, Cody, and a younger sister, Gracie.
The Alabama Forestry pageant is seven years old, but this was the first year that a local preliminary pageant was held for Barbour County girls. Twelve girls represented the local area in the state competition and several of those young ladies were named to the Top 10.
Barbour County queens who participated included:  Miss Barbour County Rebecca Hart (Top 10), Teen Miss BC Chelsey Gulledge, Junior Miss BC Rea Williams, Petite Miss BC Madison McCullough, Little Miss BC Claire Railey, Tiny Miss BC Emily Edwards.
Greater Eufaula queens included: Miss Jaclynn Williams, Teen Miss Peyton Brown (Top 10), Junior Miss Brittany Lynn (Junior Miss Alabama Forestry), Petite Miss Mackenzie Holley (Top 10), Little Miss Dani Rosen, and Tiny Miss Brooke Mitchell (Top 10).
Other area girls who represented Pike County include Shelby Tyler (Junior Miss) and Sarah-Grace Lockard (Petite Miss).
Haley Klages competed as Junior Miss Henry County.
If you or your daughter missed out on this pageant, there’s good news! Another preliminary pageant will be held in the spring and all girls are encouraged to consider participating.

In the Army
Eufaula native Alexander Reaves Jr. will soon graduate from Army basic training.
Mr. Reaves entered basic training May 23 and graduates today (Friday) at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri.
He is the son of the late Alexander and Sheila Reaves. His sister Nikia wishes him good luck and lots of love as he begins his military career. She says their mom and dad would be very proud of their son.

Panama adventure
Locals Tim and Ashley Klages spent time in Panama this summer.
The couple traveled to Panama City where they rented an apartment for a week in Casco Viejo.
Ashley, who teaches history at Eufaula High School, said she enjoyed visiting places and seeing things she had previously taught from a textbook.
She particularly loved the trip they took to the Panama Canal, since she teaches that period of history.
“Panama City is so rich in history with a cross of modern and old,” said Ashley. “The poor intermingle with the rich, and we never knew what would happen from one day to the next while we were there.”
They decided to go to Panama because it was a place they had never visited. Planning for the future, Tim had read that Panama was rated the No. 1 retirement country in the world, and the couple wanted to scope out the area.
“Panama City is a very international place,” said Tim.
“But people are so friendly, much like here in the South,” added Ashley. “It’s very laid back and it’s like there’s no hurry.”